Howling Winds
by Jvot23
Summary: Caitlyn has been so close to catching the elusive "C" for years (read her lore). Now that she is so close will she be able to catch him or will she fall short? CaitlynXOc. Might change to M later if volence becomes excessive.
1. Chapter 1

'Howling winds, scorching heat, and sand that stretched on forever, this was the Shurima Desert alright' thought Caitlyn as she pulled the mask over her mouth to keep sand out.

She had opted to skip her usual attire in favor of what the locals wore. She marveled at how light the material was and how cool she felt despite be covered from head to toe in fabric. She had here gun strapped over her shoulder. She carried a pack with one thousand rounds and a collection of other gadgets her mother had given her.

She stood atop Mogron Pass, Northern Runeterra with its grand city states behind her. And in front of her was a vast stretch of desert unimaginably far without so much as a hint of life in site. She sat on top of the staircase leading into the basin. She could see a sandstorm brewing in the distance and wondered if it would impede her progress at all.

She had come here to find "C" as she had come to call him. She'd been tracking him for years without so much as a clue except for the same calling card that bastard left at every place he had ever robbed. She finally caught a break a week ago when she had received an anonymous tip from one of Vi's former associates that C was going to break into one of the Shuriman pyramids and attempt to take whatever might lie within.

She was exhilarated at the prospect of finally catching him, she was anxious to be off on her journey but there was one problem, where was her guide? She groaned, "He better get here soon…"

"Well if I had known I'd be babysitting someone so impatient, I would have been here sooner." said a male's from behind her.

Caitlyn stood and spun to see a tall man of medium build standing there with a pack slung over his shoulders. A sword at one hip and a revolver at the other, he wore clothes like hers except his were patched in places from years of use and countless trips into the dessert. His face was rugged and he had a scar on his chin, his eyes pierced your soul and it felt as if he could see into the depths of your heart. "You're forty minutes late," she said looking at her watch.

"Name's Marcel," The man said. "I can get you anywhere in the Desert with little to no damage. Now, where exactly am I taking you?"

"Okay 'Marcel' I need you to take me to The Shurima Pyramids," Caitlyn replied.

"Could you be a little bit more specific as to which Shurima Pyramids" He said.

"What do you mean which? Are there more than one?" Caitlyn said in a confused tone.

Marcel let out a deep sigh and replied, "There are four complexes throughout the dessert. Each one is incredibly difficult to get to, not to mention that when you get there some are near impossible to access"

"And how long does it take to get to the pyramids?" Caitlyn asked.

"The closest one is a month long journey." He replied. "What exactly are you looking for out here?"

"I'm chasing a thief but how does that help?"

"Well it lets me know that he's not going to the Third Age pyramids, those have all been explored and looted." He answered. "Is there anything else that might help me narrow it down?"

"I can't think of anything. All I know is that this man is a master burglar who has never been caught. No one has ever even seen this person. They have gotten past the most advanced security systems in the world, both scientific and magic. The only reason we know it's this person is the calling card with the C on it." Caitlyn said as if she had said this a thousand times before.

"That actually does help, it rules out the Fourth Age pyramids. Amumu lets anyone who asks in, this person is obviously looking for a challenge. If I had to guess I would start at the First Age pyramids, no one has ever gotten past the guardian." Marcel explained.

"What guardian?" Caitlyn inquired.

"Your friend Ezreal is the only person to have seen it and lived and he wouldn't tell me anything about it."

"What could scare Ez so bad that he can't talk about it?"

"I don't know but whatever it is it would be pretty damn hard to get past."

"So you think C is going to try to sneak pass this guardian?" Caitlyn asked. "Let's get going then, ever second we waste standing here C is getting closer to his goal and farther out of my grasp." Caitlyn said impatiently as she started heading down the great staircase that led into the valley of death.

"Where do you think you're going!?" Marcel called after here

"I'm going to go catch C! Aren't you coming!?" Caitlyn yelled back.

Marcel stood on the handrail and slid down it jumping off to land next to Caitlyn. "So you're going to walk through the dessert with no supplies and with the nearest oasis or village over a hundred miles off?"

"Umm," Caitlyn said as her cheeks turned red from embarrassment.

Marcel sighed and said "We'll buy supplies from one of the local Minotaur tribes, that is if they don't gore me first."

"Why would they want to hurt you?"

"It's a long story and not all that important to our current situation. Let's get going, I saw a fairly large tribe a few miles out on my way over here."

Marcel started down the stairs at a brisk pace. Caitlyn matched his stride, she was eager to be off. She finally had a chance to catch her arch-nemesis and she would go to any lengths to find him.


	2. Chapter 2

A mile away from the village Caitlyn noticed Marcel slow his pace, "Is something wrong?" she asked.

"Umm let's just say me and the chief had a disagreement last time I saw him." Marcel replied.

They walked in silence the rest of the way into the village. On the outskirts of the village Caitlyn noticed something odd. 'Where are all the people?' she thought to herself.

"You noticed it too," Marcel said, "be careful, we don't know what's in there."

"Don't worry, I can take care of myself," She said jamming a clip into her gun.

They passed row after row off abandoned buildings, it looked as if the people had simply vanished. She could see through the windows that there were half eaten meals still on the table. 'What could have caused them to just run off like this?' She thought to herself.

As they neared the town square Caitlyn said, "I don't like this, there are no sign of any sort of battle. They couldn't have just disappeared."

Marcel studied the scene before him and replied, "I agree, we should lea-"

"MAAAARCEEEEEEEELL!" Roared a voice. Caitlyn turned to see a large purple mass barreling towards her, she dived out of the way but Marcel was not so lucky. Caitlyn lifted her head to see Marcel pinned to a wall by none other than Alistar, her fellow league champion.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH I'LL KILL YOU!" Alistar yelled into Marcel's face.

"Nice to see you too," Marcel replied with a smirk.

Alistar threw Marcel across the square and he crashed through the wall of one of the other buildings. Alistar roared and started to charge towards Marcel for another attack. He then proceeded to pick Marcel up and slam him into the ground; he then picked up Marcel's now limp form and threw him back into the square where his landing point made a visible crater. Caitlyn ran to where Marcel was lying to find him unconscious and covered in blood. Alistar roared and readied himself for another attack. "Alistar stop, you're going to kill him," Caitlyn said in a firm voice.

"Caitlyn, you better move or I will be forced to kill you too!" Alistar replied in a roar.

Caitlyn raised her gun bringing the crosshairs over Alistar's hulking form thinking to herself 'Damn, why didn't I bring any tranquilizer rounds with me?'

Alistar started to step forward saying, "Last chance Caitlyn, move or you both die."

"Stop Alistar, if you take another step towards him I will shoot you." She replied firmly.

Alistar let out a roar that shook the ground under Caitlyn's feet and charged. Caitlyn moved to cross hairs to Alistar's knee, and fired. Alistar fell to the side and rolled several yards before. She rushed to where Alistar was laying, holding his wound with a pool of blood slowly gathering on the ground. "Why are you defending that monster?!" Alistar asked, "I thought you were a sheriff? What kind of sheriff protects a criminal instead of arresting them?!"

"What do you mean criminal, as far as I know you nearly killed an innocent man. If I were to arrest anyone it would be you."

Just then, Marcel let out a large groan and Caitlyn rushed over to see if he was awake. 'He looks worse,' she thought, 'at this rate he'll bleed out in an hour or so.' "Alistar criminal or not he needs medical attention, where's this town's doctor?"

"Gone, like everyone else" He said with a scowl.

"Gone?! Where did they go" Caitlyn asked.

"They took off when they saw him coming"

"Why is everyone so terrified of him, he's just some guide?" Caitlyn said perplexed.

"He's not just a guide; to my people he is the harbinger of death. He who walks in the shadow and he that heralds are doom. Wherever he walks line of my people's bodies is sure to follow." Alistar said morbidly. "The day my village was attacked he came to us pretending to be a traveler near death. We took him in and sheltered him, that night he slaughtered my sister. I went to chase him down and end him, but I lost him miles from the village. When I returned the Noxians where there, and my people were dead."

"Do you know why he did this?" Caitlyn asked. She couldn't imagine any scenario where these actions could be justified.

"Why don't you ask him?"

"Regardless, I still need his help, Alistar do you know where I can get some food and water for the journey?" Caitlyn asked.

"First you bring that Bastard to our village, then you shoot me now you want to steal what little we have!?"

"I never said that," Caitlyn replied taken aback.

"You might of well have, this village is the only place to buy supplies for miles, and I'll be damned if I'm going to give you anything that will help that son of a bitch."

Marcel cracked his eyelids open and then start coughing. When he moved his hand from his mouth Caitlyn saw that it was coated in blood. "Marcel wake up, we have to go" Caitlyn said.

"Ughhhh," was his only response.

Caitlyn then proceeded to kick him squarely in the ribs. His eyes shot open from the shock of the blow. "What was that for," he said through his teeth.

"Get up," Caitlyn said, "We're leaving"

"I just got nearly beaten to death and you want me to walk into the dessert, are you crazy?" He said

"I don't care, now get your ass up, we're leaving," Caitlyn barked at him. She then grabbed him underneath the shoulder and helped him stand, he stumbled and nearly fell. When he regained balance Caitlyn noticed that he was putting barely on his right foot. 'It looks swollen, it might be sprained,' she thought to herself.

"Come on you well enough to move" Caitlyn said harshly as she stared walking out of town.

"Always a pleasure Ali," Marcel said as they passed Alistar. Alistar tried to stand and finish his assault, but collapsed under his own weight.

"I will kill you Marcel!" Alistar screamed at them as they disappeared off into the distance.


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors Note: I just want to say sorry to everyone who actually reads this story but updates are sporadic. I don't have time to write very often so when I can actually sit down and crank one of these out is a rare moment. I'll try to get these out sooner in the future, and remember leave a review with any constructive critism you may have, I love reading them and would love any tips for how you guys think I can improve my writing style. Enjoy.  
**

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Several miles from the village Marcel collapsed, Caitlyn looked over and noticed that he was unconscious 'just great,' she thought. She looked around; the only thing she could see for miles in any direction was a large craggy mess or stone jutting out of the dessert. 'Not exactly a five star hotel but it's my only choice,' she thought.

Caitlyn picked Marcel's pack up and slung it over one of her shoulders, bending down she put Marcel's arm over her free shoulder. Upon trying to lift him, Caitlyn found the combined weight of the packs and Marcel's unconscious form was too much for her. 'Well he is not going to be happy when he wakes up,' with that Caitlyn stood up grabbed an arm and started dragging Marcel through the sand.

When Caitlyn reached to rocks she propped Marcel up against a rock, Caitlyn noticed what a sorry state he seemed to be in. His clothes had a mixture a dried and fresh blood around some of his nastier injuries, Caitlyn noticed a rather large gash on his leg she hadn't noticed before coated in crimson stained sand; 'shit,' she thought to herself, 'if I don't clean out some of these wounds he going to die of an infection.'

Caitlyn scanned the rock face for suitable shelter, while being crammed with nooks and crannies few were large enough to hold the two of them and those that could were far too high for Caitlyn to get Marcel into. She decided to check the other side of the outcropping; after several minutes of searching she noticed an opening in the side of the rock four feet wide at the most and close to six feet off the ground. 'Perfect,' she thought. She returned to Marcel to find him awake and coughing up blood.

"Two question, where are we? And why is there so much sand in my ass?" Marcel asked feebly.

"I found some shelter on the other side of this rock, and if you don't want any more sand in your orifice I'm going to need your help getting you there." She replied.

"Ok, help me up," he said reaching out his hand. "On three; one, two, three."

Caitlyn pulled on his arm, as he rose he let out a cry of pain. But he was up; Caitlyn grabbed the packs and helped him get to the other side of the rocks. When they reached the opening she had noticed earlier, she threw the packs into the cave and turned to Marcel. "Here comes the hard part I need to lift you into the cave," she said noting Marcel's expression of distain at thought.

"Ok, I can do this," he said to himself under his breath and removed his arm from Caitlyn's shoulder. He propped himself against the wall and Caitlyn cupped her hands together. Marcel stepped in them and Caitlyn lifted him upwards. Marcel bit his lip to stop from screaming in pain, he regained what little composure he could and brought himself into the cave where he promptly passed out. Caitlyn lifted herself into the cave and noticed Marcel's condition. She flipped him onto his back and propped him against the back wall of the cave. Caitlyn took around the cave it was roughly eight feet deep, five feet wide, and six feet tall; much larger than one would have guessed from the size of the entrance.

Caitlyn opened her bag and found the first aid kit she kept nestled at the bottom. She thought back to her first adventures such as this one years ago, she remembered her mother insisting that she take this kit with. In all the time she had never had to use it, she was unsure if she even remembered how to use all contents properly. She opened the small pouch to find some bandages, painkillers, and strong disinfectant. She looked over Marcel trying to find all the major injuries she would have to treat. Besides the large gash on his leg and the sprained ankle she found a handful of smaller cuts she would need to treat. She rolled his pants legs up past the gash on his leg; she folded up a rag she found in Marcel's bag and shoved it between his teeth. She look closer at the cut, already noticing a green tint starting to form, she brushed of as much sand as she could without waking Marcel. She uncorked the disinfectant and prepared to pour a small amount into the wound.

The instant the liquid hit his leg Marcel's eyes shot open and he bit down on the rag. A muffled yell of pain came from him; Caitlyn noticed tears start to form around his eyes. "I'm sorry but if I don't clean these out you'll get an infection." He closed his eyes and nodded in agreement. Caitlyn then proceeded to clean the rest of the cuts she had noticed earlier, when she finished Marcel was on the verge of unconsciousness. She took the rag out of his mouth and poured a small amount of the painkiller into his mouth. She wrapped bandage around his more serious injuries. Satisfied with her work she turned her attention to his clothes, "Alright clothes off now," she said forcefully.

"I don't think I'm really in a condition for that," he replied with a grin.

"Not like that you pervert, I need to get the grime out so you're smaller injures don't get infected too," she replied with a disgusted look on her face.

"Don't waste the water there are some clothes at the bottom of my pack just get those."

Caitlyn opened his bag; she quickly found the clothes he was referring to. "This is Noxian clothing," she said holding it up.

"Ya, I'm Noxian it's not like I take great pride in it or anything," he said snatching the clothes out of her hand; after he changed he rolled over and fell asleep. Caitlyn looked out of the opening at the setting sun in the distance and thought about what Alistar had said about Marcel. She had hoped he had been lying, she didn't want to believe she had just saved a murderer.


End file.
